Smooth uncolored highs and mis, great bass extension when placed properly

None so far

Recently my wife was complaining about the looks of my Q-15s in black ash finish on black metal stands. Our living room is mainly dark woods and dark oak. She does love the sound of the 15s especially with movies paired with my velodyne CT-100 sub. I told her KEF makes floor standing speakers in the same design with a mohogony finish. She told me to get some. The W.A.F., wife approval factor, is very important. I did listen to other speakers and was very impressed with the Paradigm monitor 7s. When I first listened to the KEF Q-55s, I was sold. Great highs, mids and vocals with music material that I listen to, mostly soft rock and jazz. Great bass extension from the separate 6.5" driver. When listening to music I turn the sub off. With movies, the Q-55s and the sub shake the walls! I got my 55s for just under 500 bones which is a killer buy for these quality speakers. I.M.O., no better speaker on the market for the price. Other equipment, Nakamichi 100 watt receiver, Denon changer and DVD, monster cable inter-connects. Give the Q-55s a listen, I think you will get your checkbook or credit card out!

Similar Products Used:

KEF-Q15, Pardigm monitor 7, others too many to list

One of the best midranges you'll ever find in the sub-$1000 floorstander category. Extremely good imaging quality. Clean and adequate bass response.

Fussy about placement, loss of image occurs when you're not in the "sweet spot." Build quality is only what you'd expect for $800 sound; case in point: KEF Reference Series, superior cabinet material, diffraction and resonance control. Requires a very good high-current amplifier: its a 6 ohm speaker.

These speakers get a 4 Star Value Rating for excellent design and technological innovation for the PRICE, my own problem was their build quality. 5 Stars OVERALL, for the PRICE -- they can't do EVERYTHING right (imaging is fantastic but balance and soundstage are only fair), but they sound superb and they're cheap.

*** This is NOT a review summary. I do recommend these speakers but, what you are about to read has very little to do with the KEF Q55s per se and more to do with getting the most out of your system. Read at your own risk. ***

This is my one-year update to the review I did before. My components have changed of course:

KEF Q55s (whoo-hoo!)
Adcom GFA-5400 amplifier (bi-wiring the Kefs)
* I may get a second, vintage Adcom amp *
Adcom GFP-565 preamplifier (a "Recommended" reference component)
Rotel RCD-971 (HDCD) CD player (a new "Recommended" component)
Audioquest Crystal 10ft (bi-wire low)
Audioquest Forest+ 10ft (bi-wire hi)
Monster Cable M1500 1m (preamp --> amp)
Monster Cable Sigma 2000 1m (CD player --> preamp)
Adcom ACE-515 AC enhancer


approx. system cost = $4000

** In all likelihood, what I am about to say here does not belong in this summary box but more likely in a audiophile's magazine review or something. **

The purpose of this update however is not to bore you with equipment. Rather, I want to tell you how you can make these excellent sounding speakers sound even better. And for the most part it isn't exclusive to owning KEF speakers.
This might be considered an audiophile's secret but you gotta BURN-IN your ENTIRE system. I know some of you might think this is a waste of time (and electricity). But I think, if you're dedicated to the way music sounds and not how much you've gotta spend to get it that way then this is a very good idea.

Of course... the other way would be to spend thousands on top-notch components which in reality you could never afford.

The Q-series KEFs are an superbly designed speaker for what you pay for but they just don't perform the way they are able to, which is on a whole other level. Think about it, what you get is a Uni-Q driver which precisely pinpoints the sound coming towards you from a single point in space. Acoustically speaking, almost all sounds that are produced emanate in exactly this manner. The way they travel or propogate is a different story however. But if you like the way these speakers sound you've got to know how important this principle is and how BURN-IN your system will improve upon it.

First, go out and purchase one of those test CDs.
Something like Audiosource's LLC5 lens cleaner and system analyzer disc. Next, turn on all your equipment and DO NOT TURN IT OFF. (Or least, keep it on for as long as you are willing to pay for spending the electric bill.) A solid-state amplifier (and preamp) always sounds better when its warmed-up. Second, pop in that test CD with all those 'harsh' sounds on them, press play, and let it repeat, and repeat, and repeat. I AM NOT KIDDING!!! This is a lesson in patience. If you're willing to wait... oh, about a month to two months playing time (*gasp*) or about 1440 hours (even more) your ears will thank you. I SWEAR. I AM SERIOUS. Of course, you can stop it during those in-between times when you just would like to see how much better it sounds from your last listening period, but its important to keep going. Boy, what a difference! Right?

What you WILL "hear" are cleaner, tighter, more distinct, more elaborate, and more defined images, frequencies, notes, sounds, soundstages, bass, treble, midrange, etc. -- you name it, everything has improved. And this is not just subjective reasoning, it is empirical truth. So keep on listening!

Hint: Keep going!! If I told you you had to do this for one year, you'd all stop listening altogether. So don't. Enjoy the music. That is what is really most important.
The option here is to set the volume up high when you're doing this. This is strictly optional. I don't know anyone who wants to listen to all those annoying humming, buzzing, spinning, whirring, and tweeting sounds. I don't blame you. You don't have to. Set the volume to 0. Or don't, its up to you. All I know is that your speakers do IN FACT sound a LOT better if you do. Try it once, overnight, or on the weekend when everyone goes out to play. Including your neighbors -- hehe. Heck, give yourself the ENTIRE summer and go on vacation, I don't care. I've tried this many times and have proven to myself that without a doubt that it does indeed do the trick!!!

Special Hint: For all you dedicated enthusiasts out there, here's a real shocking revelation. Unplug your speaker wires from their speakers and play your system at full blast!! If your system can survive this kind of 'torture' test with out destroying your amplifier you be rewarded with a higher quality sound. Also, you've got yourself one tough amp. Best of all, the results are long-lasting. Note: Your amplifier will get extraordinarily hot and may overheat causing you to void your warranty with your manufacturer. NO JOKE!!

For Extreme Hobbyists Only: To prove you are as fanatical as I am, unplug your interconnects and switch them over to the phono inputs. I must tell you now, not only does this sound crazy but it also seems quite illogical, but ITS NOT! If you are one of those people who has tried to 'accidentally' listen to how your system would sound while hooked up to one of your receivers or preamps phono inputs then you probably were in for a big surprise and had a major problem. Or paid the consequences. Perhaps you've blown out your speakers and/or fried a couple of circuits. Bummer. That's because of the RIAA equalization curve, which in order to make records sound better boosts the lower frequencies of a recording and attenuates them as the frequency response rises. It was never meant to be used for line level inputs (hence the name) but this technique can be put to good use for burn-in purposes.

Now, what I am telling you to do here, if you think about it is not unlike what those Pentium/Athlon COMPUTER speed freaks do out there. (I am one of them.) You know, the ones you read about in the PC mags who go ballistic with fans, heat sinks, and thermal cooling devices in order to try to pump out just a few more Mhz of their computers!!!! Just to reach 1 Ghz?? Jeez... Honestly, they've got an extremely risky not to mention hazardous business. I am here to tell you're going to do this with AUDIO. Different style, same principle.

If you want to do this right, DO NOT raise the volume controls on your preamp when your amplifier is turned on, or they WILL fry, especially if you've got speakers connected to them, which will blow-out.

(I have always known to do this, and I have not had the unfortunate opportunity of being wrong. You can too, if you do this right, understanding the principles involved.)

You can raise them only if you've turned off or completely disconnected your amplifier from your system. In some instances, if you unplug your amplifier's power supply to the system, listen carefully and you can actually hear to your speakers playing. Just remember to switch back to line level CD inputs when you're done (when you actually do want to listen to good music and not 'harsh' static garbage) and to turn the volume back down to 0.
YES, without amplification!!! This is because the phono's preamp inputs have boosted the CD player's line level output to an extremely high level, enough so that a 'mere' signal without current is all that remains sufficient in order to play through to your speakers! Amazing, but true.
(It might also be the "sound" of your amplifier capacitors trying to drain but that is so unlikely after more than an hour.) This is a true test of how good your preamps are in retrieving signal (and a function of how powerful that signal can be), in my humble opinion.

There are a LOT of technical reasons why these "treatments" work which I cannot explain. Mostly, it involves electrical physics and electrical engineering, which I cannot claim I understand fully. Sorry. All I know is that this stuff works!! How far you want to go is up to you. One other thing... please don't blame me if you make a mistake and do the wrong thing. I cannot be held responsible for anything that goes wrong. Remember, in life you have you own free will.


Sincerely,
Daniel

Similar Products Used:

Polk Audio, Infinity

Strong bass without

Volume must be very high for bass to really kick in.

I bought these speakers from shop4.com about 4 months ago. The price was right but it ended up that their dealer was out of stock. Of course they did not mention these being out of stock until i had already recieved the rear q15 and the center q 95c. Well another thing that happened was they could no longer get me the q55's anymore. They were going to ship me the q55.2 That was not really a bad thing except that i had read in previous reviews that older models of kef did not match well with new models.

Well so of course i demanded the new center also. And about four weeks later i got the q55.2 speakers. So i called them again and finally i could get the q95.2c. So i ordered that and i had to send back my q95c right away. So i did not have my complete set up yet and it had been a month and a half. Well or course shop4.com did not tell ups right away to pick up the center channel so it was sitting in the office at my apartments for a week and a half while i could have been getting some nice surround sound. Well all said and done at about two months from the original order i got all of my speakers. Shop4 did give me free shipping on the front speakers and let me use coupons for everything on top of their already low prices. At $522 for the q55.2 shipped not too bad.

Well sorry about that shop4.com review but they are by far the cheapest online i found and i wanted you guys to know what you were in for since this same thing happened to my friend.

THe q55.2 did not sound very good when i bought them. They take a very long time to break in. Cuz now they have outstanding bass and sound very clear. You cant really hear their bass over the subs though. Also they sound so much better with about 200 watts than they do powered off of my Onkyo THX surround sound reciever.

I only give them 4 stars since 5 stars is reserved for speakers that i will never need to upgrade. Also the JBL studio 8 inch compare in sound quality and have much stronger bass.

Similar Products Used:

Infinity, JBL Studio, Bose, Polk

Sweet and smooth mid's and highs, great bass extension. Clarity, soundstage.

Grills

I think the KEF Q55s are a great pair of speakers with incredible sound!! The more I listen to these speakers, the more impressed I am with their sound.

everything....looks gorgeous doesnt it??

nothing significant

Nuff Said...BUY THEM! you wont be dissappointed!

Similar Products Used:

Cresta2s, Mission 773E, B&W602/2

I my wife managed to get me a Sony DVD player (DVPS 7700) to make full use of Dolby Digital/DTS I later added a Sony AV amp STR DB930. I need to get new speakers, I tested out the following:

JBL's Sub 10
Bose Acoustimass 10's
Kef Q's (Q65 Front,Q55 rear, Q95C Centre and Kef 30B Sub)

I found the Bose's lacking in punch, with a DVD source you find that recording levels are lower hence you need to increase the volume when playing DVD's

The JBL's were better than Bose for dyamnic range and crisp. My wife liked them because they were small.

The Kef's were something else, Without a sub they just are awesome. The dyanmic range was crisp and bass is punchy.

For Home Cinema Speaker's the Q'series are expensive. I was very luckly and managed to get my speakers half price.

I own these speakers for about 6 months, and they sound great!Very precise, bass is fast and deep, mids are exellent, highs maybe a bit loud.

I recommend using them with something like Audio Analogue Puccini or Marantz pm-66 ki signature, and they'll sound great.

If you like Q35, you'll like these too ...

The chepaer Q-35`s sound better with acoustic music,these offer more bass but overall sound is not as natural as the 35`s.
get the 35`s.

soundstaging, clarity, definition, good punch

lacks deep bass

kick ass speakers for the price i paid. was looking at the q35.2, but wanted more bass. will get a sub later on down the line

Similar Products Used:

q35.2, b&w 603, ae

good sollid bass, clear and open treble and very detailed midrange, this is a speaker for better equipment : the better the chain of your hifi components the better it will sound

Speaker should not be used in concrete build buildings without proper setup and damping otherwhise your neighbours go nuts

any material will sound good on the kef, but do not listen it on a amplifier with less then 60watts rms output per chanal otherwise it tends to sound too harsh.
this is a speaker which a will certainly place high on the wanted list for my professional Denon amplifier. this is a good speaker for any kind of music, but it needs a stable high power capable amplifier for listening on low, average and high levels. the speaker it self is extremly well built, with good cable connectors (unfortunatly CE )but it is bi wirirng capable and is delivered with spikes and should defenitly be used in concrete buildings with dampers otherwhise ther will be to much bass.

Similar Products Used:

JBL LX 2004 (better in concrete builings while less bass than the kef but much more worse on high and mid performance compaired to the kef.
Hepta Ace (dutch speaker) This is a small model, but oh what a great sound can come from it. Do not think that small speakers are not able to produce bass, mine hepta's can deliver from 40hz to 25 khz and given the size it is remarkable how this is done